Missouri Cuts Funding for Prison Education Programs

The day after Gov. Eric Greitens advocated increasing education and job training programs for inmates, he signed a budget that cut $1.4 million from Missouri Department of Corrections rehabilitation programs, with most of the reduction coming in education programs.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that in a June 29 Facebook post, Greitens said programs that help inmates learn a trade, be better parents or earn a high school diploma makes the millions of tax dollars spent on the prison system worth something.

Lawmakers who worked on the state's $27 billion spending plan said a slowdown in state tax revenue required them to find savings, and that included money for rehabilitative services.

Corrections spokesman David Owen says the cuts won't affect the number of educational opportunities offered at state prisons.